Follow by Email

Wednesday, 10 June 2015

Sydney Film Festival (28) - Max Berghouse reviews Theeb

Theeb
( Naji Abu Nowar , Jordan 2014)

This is a superb film. Those in a hurry need read no further.

As best I can, I do not wish to insert too many spoilers into this review but
some may become inevitable as I discuss some degree of historical introduction.
Very shortly into the film the tribal encampment of two orphaned brothers,
Hussein and Theeb is entered by a young British officer. Some while
subsequently, as the film has developed, he indicates tersely to his guide with
whom he entered the camp that he must get to his regiment. The timeframe would
be 1915 or 1916 I think. At that time TE Lawrence had raised a revolt in the
Arabian desert allying himself in Britain with the Hashemite dynasty. But there
were only a handful of British soldiers involved in Arabia itself, certainly no
regiment.

Again
subsequently Theeb meets a small group of Arabic irregulars who refer to
themselves as revolutionaries. So that could be some part of Arabia.

In 1915 I think (I
really have thought that it was better to write a review rather than to search
through the net, just in case I can't get enough authenticity) the British
Imperial Indian army launched an attack on the eastern part of the Ottoman
Empire certainly in Mesopotamia (subsequently Iraq), I think around the Mosul
area. This was a very large contingent of troops and the references of the
young British officer may refer to this. That is supported by his journey away
from the camp to seek out waterholes. It so happens that the British campaign
in Mesopotamia was a complete disaster. So I think it is more likely that this
is the appropriate locale of the film and it is somewhere near a part of the
Constantinople to Mecca railway, in 1915 still only recently completed, and
primarily for pilgrims and for the hoped-for development of the area.

Presumably all this would be well known as a matter of history to the primary
audience of this film, Arabic speaking people. Much as I dislike pre-film
preambles, it might well have been helpful in this case although I don't think
it derogates in any significant way from the quality of the film.

I don't believe any
further detailing of the plot is necessary in a specific way but, as to other
matters, the acting is superb. In real life the two brothers are cousins and
their real human bond is manifestly evident throughout the film. The setting,
in fact in Jordan, just like Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, UK, 1962) is a
perfect recreation/idealisation of "Arabia Deserta". Filming is in
super 16mm with anamorphic lenses, which in some scenes creates a distortion to
a very positive dramatic effect.

The
film functions extremely well on many levels, as do all good films. Primarily
it is a "Western" involving a journey into hostile parts and a
return, incited by some new purpose, in this case indicated by the English
officer. The journey is complicated by unforeseeable events. If the protagonist
manages to survive, then we presume he will prosper.

It is also a journey into maturity, of a young pubescent boy, who has to grow
up more quickly than he/we might wish by virtue of circumstances. Thirdly it is
a witness to change. It is possible that Theeb's tribe have been pilgrim guides
into the interior leading on to Mecca and certainly one of the bandits he
encounters has followed that calling. But all this is rendered irrelevant by
the new railway which cuts down journeying time from a month to a week. With
our knowledge of history we are aware of the enormous changes in a traditional
society by virtue of such things as the railway and the impact of the war, in
ways that the protagonists are not.

Lastly like the Western it is an elegy to a life that if not departed, is
disappearing very rapidly. After the incident in which all of his companions
are killed, Theeb makes a pact, more or less, for survival with one of the
attackers. This is intermingled without any deliberate emphasis, but powerfully
on Arabic notions of hospitality and concord. Seemingly Theeb is able to ignore
the fact that the bandit has killed his brother. In the climax of the film the
bandit takes the captured booty from the murdered party, especially that of the
English officer to a Turkish garrison where he is paid out in coin by the
Turkish garrison commander. This "modern" transaction repulses Theeb
who shoots the bandit with the British Webley revolver of the killed English
officer. This is immediately outside the garrison' s front door. The Turkish
commander on asking why the boy has done it, receiving the reply "He
killed my brother" simply orders the boy to go home as if the explanation
is fully satisfactory.

I thought this was an exemplary film interspersing moments of quiet with very
well staged action, particularly the shootout scenes. With all that I think it
is a connoisseur's film and I think its prospect of general wide release would
be slim.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Followers

About Me

This is a blog devoted to things of interest to cinephiles. The subjects are randomly selected in the manner of a diary and are somewhat oriented to Sydney, Australia. In the past I used to send out these entries via regular emails but this has trailed off and its best to check here for anything new.You can contact me direct via email at filmalert101@gmail.com